Will Covid-19 feel the heat?

A HOT summer could help curb the spread of Covid-19, a top epidemiologist has said.

Professor Keith Neal of Nottingham University said some virus particles were spread in minuscule specks of water that would evaporate in sunny weather.

Stripped of moisture, the particles infect people for a shorter time and surfaces are less likely to be contaminated.

‘Viruses don’t like getting dried out because it disrupts the fatty “envelope” that surrounds the protein shell,’ said Prof Neal.

He added that very strong ultra-violet light also degraded the virus, although it was unclear if summer sunlight was intense enough.

However, the breezes of recent days may help disperse the virus. This matters because the number of particles a person is exposed to – called the viral load – is crucial. Most people’s immune systems become overwhelmed when exposed to hundreds or thousands of virus particles.

Another reason that summer may help curb the virus is that people tend to socialise further apart when they are outside.